Door and step operating mechanism.



R. T. SENTER.

DOOR AND STEP OPERATING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 4, 1912. RENEWED MAY 22, 1914.

Patented Aug. 4, 1914.

2 SHEETS$HEBT l.

THE NORRIS PETERS CO.. PHOTO-LITHQ, WASHINGTON. D. C:

R. T. SENTER.

DOOR AND STEP OPERATING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 4, 1912. RENEWED MAY 22, m4.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Patented Aug. 4, 1914.

- l6 vwmdo'r/ 23 jallfi/l ,36712613 351 z i g 2 GUM/nu} THE NORRISPETERS (OH FHOTO-LITHO, WASHINGTONv D C.

rinrr s'rn'rns PATENT onnn.

RALPH T. SENTEE, 0F PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNEASSIGNMENTS, TO THE NEAR-SIDE CAR COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A

CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

D003 AND STEP OPERATING MECHANISM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented A11.4, 1914..

Original application filed. July 5, 1911, Serial No. 638,635. Dividedand this application filed. March 4, 1912, Serial No. 681,545. RenewedMay 22, 1914. Serial No. 840,364.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I RALPH T. SnN'rnn a citizenof the United States, residing at Philadelphia, in the county ofPhiladelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements 1n Door and Step Operating Mechanism, of.

which the following is a specification, reference being had therein tothe accompanying drawing.

This invention relates to door and step operating mechanism for streetcars and is shown as applied to a car of the type shown and described inthe application filed by me July 5, 1911, Serial Number 638,635, of

which application this present application is a division.

The object of the invention is to provide a separate movable step foreach door and to provide means for actuating each step in unison withthe corresponding door; and further, to actuate each door and its stepeither simultaneously with or separately from the other door and itsstep.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1v is a perspective View of thefront platform of a street car equipped with my invention; Fig. 2 is adetail view of the door and step operating mechanism showing parts ofthecar in dotted lines; Fig. 3 is a detail view, partly in section, ofthe operating devices; and Fig. 4 is a sectional view showing a portionof the step operating mechanism;

and Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the door and;

step operating mechanisms.

In these drawings I have illustrated one embodiment of my invention andhave shown the same as applied to a street car having its forwardportion or front platform divided by a rail or barrier,'1, to form'stance the doors are located at the edge of the platform adjacent to thesteps and means are provided for opening and closing said doors eitherindividually or simultaneously; and further, means are provided foroperating each step in unison with its door, where. by when the door isopen the step will be down in position for use and when the door is inits closed position the step will be folded up against the edge of theplatform. In the present instance each door comprises two sectionshinged together at their adjacent edges. One section of each door isrigidly secured at its edge to a door supporting rod, as indicated at 6and 7, and the other section of each door is connected at its outer edgewith a guide by means of which it is caused to move toward and away fromthe supporting rod to which the other section of the same door isconnected, thus causing the outer section of the door to fold upon thatsection thereof which is connected to the rod when the latter section ismoved into its open position. Such guides are well known in the art andneed not be here shown or described. Each step is pivotally mounted atits inner edge upon brackets 8, whereby it can be movedinto a horizontalor a vertical position.

Suitable operating devices are provided for moving the doors into theiropen or closed positions at the will of the oflicer in charge and theseoperating devices are so connected with the steps as to cause the latterto move in unison with theirrespective doors. In the present form of themechanism the operating devices comprise two vertical shafts 9 and 10having suitable connections with the respective doors and steps.Preferably the shafts 9 and 10 are telescopically arranged and areprovided at their lower ends with crank arms 11 and 12 which areconnected by means of connecting rods 13 and 14 with crank arms 15 and16 rigidly secured to the lower ends of the respective door supportingrods 6 and 7 Obviously by manipulating the shafts 9 and 10 motion willbe imparted to the doors. Suitable connections are established betweenthe shafts and respective steps to cause this same manipulation of theshafts to operate the steps as well as the doors. This connection may beof any suitable character but, as here shown, comprises rods 17 and 18connected to and movable with the rods 13 and 14, respectively, and alsoconnected with the corresponding steps. The rods 17 and 18 are connectedto rock arms 19 and 19 rigidly secured to sleeves 20 and 20 mounted onstud shafts 24 and 24 secured to the frame of the car and dependingthereto other crank arms 21 and 21 connected by short rods 22 and 22with inwardly projecting lugs 23 and 23 rigidly secured to therespective steps, 4 and 5. The lugs 23 and 23 project inwardly from theaXes about which the steps move. Consequently, a downward and outwardmovement of either log will cause the outer portion of the correspondingstep to swing upward and inward and thereby fold against the side of thecar. It will be apparent, therefore, that rotary movement imparted toeither of the vertical. shafts 9 and 10 will simultaneously impartmovement to the door and the step with which it is connected, thismovement being such as to open or close the door and lower or raise thestep. This movement may be imparted to the operating devices in anysuitable manner. In the present instance 'we have shown the upper end ofeach shaft as having connected thereto an operating member, such as arms24: and 25, having handles 26 and 27. These handles are so arranged ontheir respective shafts that when the doors are both in either theiropen or closed positions the two arms. will lie substantially paralleland one above the other, the arrangement being such that either handlecan be readily grasped and the corresponding operating device actuated.Preferably, means are also provided to enable the two operating devicesto be actuated in unison, thus simultaneously operating both doorsandboth steps. To this end the lower arm 25 has pivotally mountedthereon a lever 28 connected atone end to a pin 29 which is slidablymounted in a guideway in the arm and is so arranged that when the twoarms are in their parallel positions it will be in alinement with anopening 30 in the upper arm 24. A rod 31 is slidably mounted in thehandle 27 of the lower arm and arranged to press upon the adjacent endof the lever 28. Thus, when the officer grasps the handle 27 he can, bythe pressure of his thumb upon the rod 31, connect the two, armstogether and cause the'operating devices to move in unison.

With the arrangement of the mechanism herein described the controllingofficer, who, in the present instance, is the motorman, can operateeither door and its step independently of the other door and its step orhe can, by the same movement, simultaneously operate both doors andtheir corresponding steps,

It will be understood that, while I have shown and described oneembodiment of the invention, this form is chosen for the purpose ofillustration only and I do not desire to be limited to the details ofconstruction shown and described, for obvious modifications will occurto a person skilled in the art;

with the other to cause them to move Having thus fully described myinvention,

what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is V operatesaid doors either separately or in unison, and connections between saidsteps and the respective operating devices to cause each step to beactuated in unison with the corresponding door.

2. The combination, with a plurality of doors, and a hinged step foreach of said doors, of a pair of telescoping shafts, means for actuatingeach of said shafts, rods connecting the respective shafts with therespective doors, other'rods connected at one end with the respectivefirst-mentioned rods and at their other ends with the respective steps,and means for connecting said shafts one unison.

3. The combination, with a door, a rotary supporting rod, to which saiddoor is secured, astep mountedon a horizontal axis adjacent to saiddoor, and a projection carried by said step and extending beyond saidaxis, of a shaft, meansfor imparting rotary movement to said shaft, acrank arm secured to said shaft, a second crank arm secured to axis andhaving a projection extending be-1 yond said axis, of vertical shaftseach hay ing a crank arm secured thereto, a crank arm secured to thelower end of each of said supporting rods, rods to connect the crankarms of said shafts with the crank arms of the respectivedoor-supporting rods, rock arms a supported adjacent to and operativelyconnected with the projections from the respective steps, and a rodconnecting said rock arms, with the respective connecting rods, andmeans for actuating said shafts either individually or in unison.

5. The combination, with a plurality of doors, and a step mountedadjacent to each 7 door and movable into operative and inoperative positons, of a pair of shafts, connections between said shafts and therespective doors and corresponding steps, whereby the manipulation ofone shaft will actuate one door and its step and the manipulation of theother shaft will actuate the other door and its step, and means forconnecting said shafts so they will move in unison to simultaneouslyactuate both doors and both steps.

6. The combination, with a plurality of doors, and a step mounted adjacent to each door and movable into operative and inoperative positions,of a pair of telescoping shafts, connections between said shafts and therespective doors and corresponding steps, whereby the manipulation ofone shaft Will actuate one door and its step and the manipulation of theother shaft will actuate the other door and its step, and means forconnecting said shafts so they will move in unison to simultaneouslyactuate both doors and both steps.

In testimony whereof, I affix my signature in presence of tWo Witnesses.

RALPH T. SENTER.

Witnesses EDWARD P. RAWLE, HENRY G. ESLING.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of I'at'ents Washington, D. 0."

